West Virginia argus. [volume] (Kingwood, W. Va.) 1877-1946, 1887-10-20
UNOCCUPIED FIELDS.
DIR. TALMAGE'S SUNDAY SERMON.
Some OF the Many Ways in which
Good May be Done.

| latter the church was full of people, ana
al the adjoining rooms packed, as many
people went away from the doors as got in.
TEXT: Lest I should build upon another
mans foundation. n-Romans XIV, 20.
Stirring reports come from all parts Of
America showing what n great work the
churches OF God are doing, and [ congratu-
late them and their pastors. Misapprehen-
sions have been going the rounds OF some Of
the religious press depreciating the gener-
oSity OF this church 1881 3l6 a have been
paid cash down i'm this church for religious
uses and Christian work during the nineteen
years OF my ministry here. This church was
quit by oil denominations of Christians and
by people from all lands, and hence we have
been r. ising money for many objects outside
our denomination, and that has sometimes
interiered with our contributions 10 the
Boards OF our denomination. Subscription
books for all good objects Christian. bumani-
tarian collegiate, and missionary have been
mere as common rs the daylight and no
church in Christendom has been more con-
unuous I'm its henevolences than this Be
nae that we have received during the year
- souls ON profession OF faith i'm Christ a
TACT that mention, not I'm Boosting, but TO
snow that this church has not been idle
The most of our accessons have been from
tho outside world, so that, taking the idea Of
peoples foundations
In laying out the plan of his missionary
tour Paul sought out towns and cities which
had not yet been preached 10. He goes to
Oorlnth, city mentioned for splendor and
vice, and Jerusalem, where the priesthood
ana the Sanhedrim We're ready 20 leap with
both feet Cpon tho Christian religion He
feels he has especial work 20 do and he means
70 40 u. what was the RESULT The grand
est lie OF usetulne s That n man ever lived
we modern Christian workers ara not apt TO
initiate Paul. We build on other people's
IIo1ndatlons; III we erect church we prefer
70 have 1t filled with families, all of whom
nave been pious 10 we gather a Sabbath
sobool class, we want good BOYS and girls
mar combed, faces washed, manners attract
I've. 20 church in this day is apt 10 DO
bullt out OF other churches. Some ministers
spend all their time in fishing i'm other peo-
pies ponds, and they throw the line into that
church pond and jerk out n Methodist, and
throw the line into another church pond and
,nrlng out n Presbyterian, end there is a re-
ligious row in some ncghboring church. and
whole school of fish swim Off from that
pond, and we take them all i'm with one sweep
or the net What is gained Absolutely
nothing for the general cause of Christ. II
IS only as In an army, when regiment is
transferred from one divi,io TO another
from the Tennessee TO the Potomac
w nat Strengthens the army is new recruits
what have always desired is that while we
are courteous 70 those coming from other
hocks, we build our church not out of other
churches, but out of the world, lest we build
on another mans foundation The fact il
this is a big world When. in our schoolboy
days, we learned the diameter and circumfeT-
ence OF this planet we did not learn half IL
has latitude and longitude and diameter
ana circumference OF want and woo and sin
That no figures can calculate. This one spir-
itual continent Of wretcheduessl caches across
all zones, and il We're called TO give its geo
graphical boundary would say ii is bounded
on the north and south and east and west by
the great heart of Gods sympathy and love
On, It Is great world. Since o'clock this
morning 6O,sOO persons have been born, and
all these multiplied populations are TO be
reached of the Gospel. In England, or
In our eastern American cities, we
are being much crowded, and an acre of
ground is OF great value, but out West 500
acres Is small farm, and 10000 acres is no
unusual possession But there is a vast spir-
itual field here and everywhere unoccupied,
plenty OF room for more, not building on
another mans foundation.
We need, as churches, to stop bombardinR
the old ironclad sinners that have been proof
against thirty years of Christian assault
Alas FOR that church which lacks the spirit of
evangelism, spending enough on one chande-
ner TO hight 800 souls 70 glory, and in one
carved pillar enough 20 have made thousand
men pillars in the house OF our God for
ever" and doing less good than many log
cabin meeting house, with tallow candles
stuck in wooden sockets, and a minister who
mas never seen college or known the differ
ence between Greek and Choctaw. We
need as churches 10 get into sympathy
with the great outside world. and let them
know that none are so broken hearted or
hardly besteai that will not be welcomed
mol" says some fastidious Christian II
don't like 70 be crowded in church. Don't
put any one in my pew My brother, what
VIII you do in heaven When n great null
titude That no man can number assemblies
they VIII put fifty in your new What are
the select few today assembled in the Chris
tan churches compared 20 the mightier mill
ions outside Of them, eight hundred thousand
IN Brooklyn, but less than one hundred
thousand in the Churchesf Many Of the
churches are like a hospital that should adver-
tise that its patients must have nothing
worse than toothache or "run-rounds " but mo-
broken heads, no crushed ankles, no fractured
thighs. Give us for treatment moderate sin
ners, velvet coated sinners and sinners with
q gloss on. 10 is as though a man had a
farm OF three thousand acres and put all his
work on one acre. lie may raise never so
large ears OF corr, never so big heads Of wheat
ne would remain poor The church Of God has
bestowed its chief care on one aero, and has
raised splendid men and women in that small
incioSure; but the field is the world That
means North and South America. Europe
Asia and Africa and all the islands of tho
sea. IL is as though after great battle there
were left 5000 wounded and dying on tho
HEIDI ana three surgeons gave all their time
% three patients undar their charge The
Major General comrs in and says 10 the doc
tors. Come out here and look at the nearly
] Dy,UVJ lying TOT lack OF surgical attendance
NO say e. three doctors standing there
tanning their patients, 1--WE have three inn
portant cases here, and we arc attending TO
them, and whom we are not positively busy
with their wounds, 10 takes an our time
10 keep the flies OFT ~ In this awful bat
tie Of sin and sorrow. whore millions have
fallen ON millions do not let us spend all our
/ time in taking care Of few people and when
the command comes. 500 into the world. -
\ say practically. No. ] cannot 20. have here
Few choice cases, and ! avn busy Keeping of
the hies" There are multitudes today who
\ have never had any Christian worker look
\ them in the eye. and with clrnCstnoss in the
| accumulation, saY: "COme " or they would
\ long ago have been in the kingdom NY
I friends, religion is either n sham or "a tromsn-
\ dOus reality II 10 be- n sham lot us disband
our churches and Christian association n
I % be a reality. then great populations are on
\ tho way 20 The bar OF God untitled for the
/ ordeal and what are we dOiugf
in order ~ reach tho mulHtude Of out
| slders we must drop all teehniealites out Of
/ our religion. Whom we talk ~ people about
/ the hyp0etatic union and French Ency To-
/ pedianism. and Erastiniauian. and Comp'u-
/ tensianism, wo hro as impoItic and little
. understood or f physician should talk b. an
/ ordinary patient about the pericardium aud
I lufcr10siaI muscle and scorbutic svmptorus
. hany OF us come ont NJ the THEOLOGICAL oui-
I uarir- ~ loaded mp that we take the frst ton
/ year ~ show our people how much we know.
I ana the next ten years get orr people to
3 Know as much ag we know and 70 fhe oud
.U d. 20 H.H..H . ~